Cameron denies snubbing Hollande as Whitehall looks to build bridges - UK Politics - UK - The Independent

The Prime Minister has made little secret of his support for the conservative incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy, who looks likely to be defeated in the run-off with Mr Hollande on 6 May. The Socialist presidential candidate met Ed Miliband, the Labour leader, when he visited London last month, but Mr Cameron refused to meet him.

By contrast, Mr Cameron praised Mr Sarkozy's "leadership and courage" during a visit to Paris in February and wished him well in his re-election bid.

The Prime Minister's official spokesman said the recent decision not to meet him was not a snub.

The Foreign Office is now attempting to forge links with Mr Hollande's team.

Enter URL:

Enter URL:

News

A 1930 image of the Karl Albrecht Spiritousen and Lebensmittel shop, Essen. The shop was opened by Karl and Theo Albrecht’s mother; the brothers later founded Aldi

Karl Albrecht: The man who destroyed Tesco

people

Arts and Entertainment

Standing the test of time: Michael J Fox and Christopher Lloyd in 'Back to the Future'

The worst kept secret in cinema

filmA cult movie event aims to immerse audiences of 80,000 in ‘Back to the Future’. But has it lost its magic?

Arts and Entertainment

Flora Spencer-Longhurst as Lavinia, William Houston as Titus Andronicus and Dyfan Dwyfor as Lucius

Gore at the Globe

theatreThe Shakespeare play that proved too much for more than 100 people

News

'The kidnapped Nigerian schoolgirls should form a punk band'

exclusivePunk icon Viv Albertine on Sid Vicious, complacent white men, and why free love led to rape

Arts and Entertainment

Stir crazy: Noel Fielding in 'Luxury Comedy 2: Tales from Painted Hawaii'

Noel’s new comic brew

comedyAs ‘Luxury Comedy’ returns, Noel Fielding on why mainstream success scares him and what the future holds for 'The Boosh'

Life and Style

Flow chart: Karl Landsteiner discovered blood types in 1900, yet scientists have still not come up with an explanation for their existence

Are you my blood type?

lifeAll of us have one. Yet even now, it’s a matter of debate what they’re for

Arts and Entertainment

'Weird Al' Yankovic, or Alfred Matthew, at the 2014 Los Angeles Film Festival Screening of

'Weird Al' Yankovic's 'Word Crimes'

musicHis latest video is an ode to good grammar. But what do our experts think he’s missed out?

Sport

New Real Madrid signing James Rodríguez with club president Florentino Perez

Rodriguez joins Real

sportColombian World Cup star completes £63m move to Spain

Travel

Hotel Tour d’Auvergne in Paris launches pay-what-you-want

Honesty box hotels: You decide how much you pay

travelIt seems fraught with financial risk, but the policy has its benefits

Arts and Entertainment

Milly and The Mermaids

Outstanding tall stories for short people

booksThe best children's books for this summer

Life and Style

News to me: family events were recorded in the personal columns

The new hatched, matched and dispatched

techFamily events used to be marked in the personal columns. But now Facebook has usurped that

Most Shared
Most Viewed
Most Commented

Have you tried new the Independent Digital Edition apps?

SPONSORED FEATURES

Topman: Tips from top stylists

Shop London has teamed up with Topman. View the latest film clips shot at Topman Oxford Circus, plus your chance to win a £1,500 voucher.

Win a holiday The Gambia London Trend

Cycling Holiday wardrobe Specsavers

#editme Prizes & offers Business videos

Win a tailor-made trip to Graubünden, Switzerland’s No. 1 holiday destination

Discover Swiss alpine holidays – your way

Topman The Gambia London Trend

Cycling Holiday wardrobe Specsavers

#editme Prizes & offers Business videos

The Gambia in the Summer

The Gambia may be the smallest country in mainland Africa but this is no reflection of it rich versatile offering.

Topman Win a holiday London Trend

Cycling Holiday wardrobe Specsavers

#editme Prizes & offers Business videos

#fashionhappy film competition

Calling all fashionistas! Enter our film competition to win a £2,000 Westfield Gift Card plus an internship at London Live.

Topman Win a holiday The Gambia

Cycling Holiday wardrobe Specsavers

#editme Prizes & offers Business videos

Win a family FreeCycle weekend experience

This summer we’ve teamed up with Prudential to offer readers a brilliant opportunity to get the whole family together to experience the fun and freedom of cycling around a 10-mile traffic-free circuit in central London.

Topman Win a holiday The Gambia

London Trend Holiday wardrobe Specsavers

#editme Prizes & offers Business videos

Update your holiday wardrobe

Update your holiday wardrobe with tropical prints, the perfect pair of sandals and some seriously stylish swimwear to make a splash in. Bon voyage.

Topman Win a holiday The Gambia

London Trend Cycling Specsavers

#editme Prizes & offers Business videos

Summer Sports Lux

From silk track pants to a swimsuit to make a splash in, this summer’s sport lux moment is certain to stretch your style credentials.

Topman Win a holiday The Gambia

London Trend Cycling Holiday wardrobe

#editme Prizes & offers Business videos

Get the look. See the trends.

Westfield and Snapfashion team up to create a new digital styling tool. Create a style board or browse this season's trends. #editme.

Topman Win a holiday The Gambia

London Trend Cycling Holiday wardrobe

Specsavers Prizes & offers Business videos

Enter the latest Independent competitions

Win anything from gadgets to five-star holidays on our competitions and offers page.

Topman Win a holiday The Gambia

London Trend Cycling Holiday wardrobe

Specsavers #editme Business videos

Business videos from commercial thought leaders

Watch the best in the business world give their insights into the world of business.

Topman Win a holiday The Gambia

London Trend Cycling Holiday wardrobe

Specsavers #editme Prizes & offers

Independent Dating

Show Me

Between: and

Location:

By clicking 'Search' you
are agreeing to our
Terms of Use.

Noel Fielding's 'Luxury Comedy': A land of the outright bizarre

Noel Fielding's 'Luxury Comedy'

A land of the outright bizarre

What are the worst 'Word Crimes'?

What are the worst 'Word Crimes'?

‘Weird Al’ Yankovic's latest video is an ode to good grammar. But what do The Independent’s experts think he’s missed out?

Can Secret Cinema sell 80,000 'Back to the Future' tickets?

The worst kept secret in cinema

A cult movie event aims to immerse audiences of 80,000 in ‘Back to the Future’. But has it lost its magic?

Facebook: The new hatched, matched and dispatched

The new hatched, matched and dispatched

Family events used to be marked in the personal columns. But now Facebook has usurped the ‘Births, Deaths and Marriages’ announcements

Why do we have blood types?

Are you my type?

All of us have one but probably never wondered why. Yet even now, a century after blood types were discovered, it’s a matter of debate what they’re for

Honesty box hotels: You decide how much you pay

Honesty box hotels

Five hotels in Paris now allow guests to pay only what they think their stay was worth. It seems fraught with financial risk, but the honesty policy has its benefit

Commonwealth Games 2014: Why weight of pressure rests easy on Michael Jamieson’s shoulders

Michael Jamieson: Why weight of pressure rests easy on his shoulders

The Scottish swimmer is ready for ‘the biggest race of my life’ at the Commonwealth Games

Some are reformed drug addicts. Some are single mums. All are on benefits. But now these so-called 'scroungers’ are fighting back

The 'scroungers’ fight back

The welfare claimants battling to alter stereotypes

Amazing video shows Nasa 'flame extinguishment experiment' in action

Fireballs in space

Amazing video shows Nasa's 'flame extinguishment experiment' in action

A Bible for billionaires

A Bible for billionaires

Find out why America's richest men are reading John Brookes

Paranoid parenting is on the rise - and our children are suffering because of it

Paranoid parenting is on the rise

And our children are suffering because of it

For sale: Island where the Magna Carta was sealed

Magna Carta Island goes on sale

Yours for a cool £4m

Phone hacking scandal special report: The slide into crime at the 'News of the World'

The hacker's tale: the slide into crime at the 'News of the World'

Glenn Mulcaire was jailed for six months for intercepting phone messages. James Hanning tells his story in a new book. This is an extract

We flinch, but there are degrees of paedophilia

We flinch, but there are degrees of paedophilia

Child abusers are not all the same, yet the idea of treating them differently in relation to the severity of their crimes has somehow become controversial

The truth about conspiracy theories is that some require considering

The truth about conspiracy theories is that some require considering

For instance, did Isis kill the Israeli teenagers to trigger a war, asks Patrick Cockburn